Lawiswis ng Salita ni P. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Ika-21 ng Pebrero 2024
Larawan mula sa forbes.com, 2019.
Ang demonyong cellphone tukso at ugat ng pagkakasala sa maraming pagkakataon; mga chismis, maling impormasyon kinakalat agad namang kinakagat ng marami sa pag-iisip at pang-unawa ay salat.
Ang demonyong cellphone hindi mabitiwan hindi maiwanan palaging iniingatan mga tinatagong lihim larawan at kahalayan ng huwad nating katauhan.
Ang demonyong cellphone istorbo at pang-gulo panginoong hindi mapahindian napakalaking kawalan kung hindi matandaan saan naiwanan, katinuan nawala nang tuluyan.
Ang demonyong cellphone winawasak ating katahimikan nawala na rin ating kapanatagan sa halip maghatid ng kaisahan pagkakahiwa-hiwalay bunga sa maraming karanasan pinalitan pamilya at kaibigan.
Ang demonyong cellphone lahat na lang ibinunyag wala nang pitagan ni paggalang sa kasagraduhan ng bawat nilalang ultimo kasamaan nakabuyangyang, pinagpipistahan.
Ang demonyong cellphone palagi nang namamagitan sa ating mga ugnayan atin nang nakalimutan damhin kapanatilihan pinalitan nitong malamig na kasangkapan pintig ng kalooban.
Sa panahong ito ng Kuwaresma iwanan at bitiwan ang cellphone dumedemonyo, nagpapagulo sa buhay nating mga tao; manahimik katulad ni Kristo sa ilang nitong ating buhay upang Siya ay makaniig at marinig Kanyang tinig ika'y iniibig!
Ang painting na “Temptation in the Wilderness” ni Briton Riviere (1840-1920) mula sa commons.wikimedia.org.
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, 18 February 2024
Photo by author, view of Israel from side of Jordan, May 2019.
It is the first week of Lent where the gospel is always about the temptation of Jesus by the devil in the desert. Naturally, the other thing that came to our mind while praying was the song A Horse With No Name by three young Americans who called themselves “America”.
It was still the great heydays of rock n’ roll and even though we were still too young at the time when this was playing on the airwaves, we just knew it was a great music especially when every grown up man was listening to it, humming it and even plucking its chords in their guitars. At that time, we just loved the melody and poetry of the lyrics, beginning with the unusual title A Horse With No Name with its very propitious guitars that kicked our imaginations of a far away journey in the desert.
On the first part of the journey I was looking at all the life There were plants and birds and rocks and things There was sand and hills and rings
The first thing I met was a fly with a buzz And the sky with no clouds The heat was hot and the ground was dry But the air was full of sound
I’ve been through the desert on a horse with no name It felt good to be out of the rain In the desert you can’t remember your name ‘Cause there ain’t no one for to give you no pain La la la la la la…
The desert is more than a place in the Bible. It was more of a setting for meeting and experiencing God amid its dryness and wilderness. Every great prophet in the Old Testament went to the desert to pray and meet God; hence, in the New Testament, Jesus was shown as going first to the desert before launching his mission.
How ironic yet amazing that it is in the desert of our life’s poverty and limitations, sickness and weakness, dryness and weariness when we actually meet God, when we experience fulfillment and meaning in life (https://lordmychef.com/2024/02/17/lent-a-pilgrimage-to-god/). This biblical meaning of the desert was not far from the views of the song’s composer, Dewel Bunnell who explained later that A Horse With No Name was “a metaphor for a vehicle to get away from life’s confusion into a quiet, peaceful place” (from Wikipedia).
However, we remember too how when we were in high school (early 80’s) while listening to “American Top 40” on 99.5RT-FM when Casey Kasem claimed Bunnell saying that they were simply playing with words and chords when they came up with A Horse With No Name!
Whatever… but the music has become a classic because of its sincere message about life as a mystery not meant to be solved at all (because it is unsolvable!). For five decades since releasing A Horse With No Name, the trio of America had taught us how to deal with life’s mysteries by simply allowing ourselves to be wrapped by these mysteries, keeping our hearts and minds open in awaiting new revelations unfolding before us daily. Don’t forget too to have that sense of awe while being wrapped by life’s mysteries which is actually what Lent is asking us during this season as we return to God, our very root and grounding in order to find ourselves anew who are so lost in this world of so many disguises.
After nine days I let the horse run free ‘Cause the desert had turned to sea There were plants and birds and rocks and things There was sand and hills and rings
The ocean is a desert with its life underground And a perfect disguise above Under the cities lies a heart made of ground But the humans will give no love
Here’s America with their first hit A Horse With No Name. Sing along, reflect and, pray. Have a blessed week ahead in this desert of life!
40 Shades of Lent by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Sunday Recipe for the Soul, Lent I-B, 18 February 2024 Genesis 9:8-15 + + 1 Peter 3:18-22 + + Mark 1:12-15
Pope Benedict XVI eloquently described Lent in his first papal Lenten message in 2006 when he wrote, “Lent is a privileged time of interior pilgrimage towards Him Who is the fount of mercy. It is a pilgrimage in which He Himself accompanies us through the desert of our poverty, sustaining us on our way towards the intense joy of Easter.”
What a beautiful picture too of the short gospel from Mark we heard this first Sunday in Lent that briefly describes the temptation of Jesus so unlike the detailed versions by Matthew and Luke. Nonetheless, Mark’s terse account is loaded heavily in rich symbols and meanings.
The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among the wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him. After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of god is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”
Mark 1:12-15
This scene comes right after the baptism of Jesus by John at the Jordan. It is sad that our liturgical texts have not yet adopted the new revised editions of major Catholic bibles wherein Mark noted how “immediately” or “at once” after his baptism, Jesus was tempted in the desert.
(At once) The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert tempted by Satan.
“Temptation in the Wilderness” painting by Briton Riviere (1840-1920) from commons.wikimedia.org.
Do we not experience the same thing daily in life when even right in the moment we are trying to pray, trying to become better when temptations come our way like when we decided to pray or go celebrate the Mass, something else would distract or prevent us from fulfilling it?
See how difficult it is to go on diet when suddenly mother cooks your favorite meal or somebody comes for a visit with burgers and sodas and cakes! Just when you have decided to quit a vice, at once the temptation comes to pick it up again, as we plea to make it our “last” cigarette or joint, last shot of alcohol, last look at pornography, last gamble and so many other lasts that never really ended! Recall those times we decided to finally embark on any religious or spiritual endeavor when at once we are intensely challenged by carnal and material desires.
It is a reality of life that Jesus faced too like us, being tempted immediately by Satan after his baptism when God identified him as his beloved Son with whom he is well pleased. Mark warns us today how Satan is bent on tempting us to abandon God, be lost and just be ordinary without meaning and fulfillment in life and existence. The five Sundays in Lent depict to us our internal pilgrimage and journey into God’s inner room to be with him in Christ Jesus. It is a pilgrimage as we return to our very root and grounding who is God. Let us not waste the grace of this blessed season to become like God again, truly his image and likeness marred by sin and evil.
Oh what a joy to be one with God again, to regain our true selves – contented and fulfilled in our very selves minus all the trappings of this world’s artificialities of fake selves with fake faces and skin, of fake lives glamorized in social media. It is a pilgrimage in the desert where we are invited to leave everything behind, to be bare and nothing for we solely need only God to truly see again our selves as true, good, and beautiful. Not with cosmetics nor food nor even modern thoughts and ideas pretending to be just and fair that deceive us and leave us more empty and lost.
He was among the wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him.
“Jesus Ministered to by Angels” painting by James Tissot (1836-1902) from commons.wikipedia.org.
Lent is an interior pilgrimage to God lived in the wilderness too, an invitation for us to go back to Paradise even in the midst of the chaos around us. This we do every Sunday in the Mass when we go back to God, to his Church and the sacraments.
This is why Lent is the time for more prayers, fasting and alms-giving as they all strengthen our spiritual resolve to become better persons, to become who we really are – beloved children of God with dignity, meaning and purpose found in him.
Despite the fall of Adam and Eve, God never abandoned us because he loves us so much that he sent us Jesus Christ his Son to accompany and show us how among the wild beasts around us, there are angels attending to our needs at all times. Everyone has a struggle, a problem dealing with. Nobody is without any crisis nor lives perfectly. That’s the imagery of the desert, a wilderness with the wildest beasts that are most ferocious and most poisonous.
Yet, God has assured us even right after the Fall that we are his most precious creation that he takes the initiative always to save us from every danger of sickness and death. Most of all, of sin like when Cain was so jealous of his brother Abel, the Lord said to him, “Why are you angry? Why are you dejected? If you act rightly, you will be accepted; but if not, sin lies in wait at the door; its urge is for you, yet you can rule over it” (Gen. 4:6-7).
In the first reading we heard how God acted like human, so fed up with our sinfulness that he sent a great flood to wipe the earth clean again. However, do not forget that before sending the great flood, God sent first Noah and his family. Again, that is exactly how our life is!
Unknown to us, long before any problem and sufferings come to us, there is always God preparing already a remedy, a solution, an exit plan for us in the first place like when he sent Noah and his family to ensure there would still be good people left after the flood. This reached its highest point in Jesus whom the Father sent to become the new rainbow of the sky when Christ stretched out his arms on the Cross to save us. Peter beautifully explained this truth in our second reading today, reminding us how the great flood at Noah’s time was a prefiguring of our baptism in Jesus Christ when we become the Father’s beloved and forgiven children.
Never lose hope when things seem to be so bad and miserable in life. Remember how the silver linings appear always after the heavy rains or how the leaves are greenest after the storm. Yes, life is like a desert, a wilderness with so many wild beasts that may times we could not escape temptations and fall into sins. But God is greater than our hearts, sending us more than enough angels even his only begotten Son so we may overcome temptations and sins, downfalls and defeats in life. Go back to God, go back to paradise in prayers and the Mass. Handle life with prayer, always PUSH, that is, Pray Until Something Happens.
After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: "This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel."
This is the most unique feature in Mark’s brief account of the temptation of Jesus by Satan. Mark began his gospel just like the three other evangelists linking the life and mission of Jesus with John the Baptist; however, he abruptly removed John from this scene by simply saying “after John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God.”
“Ganun lang yon?” we might ask in Filipino. It would take five more chapters before Mark explains to us the fate of John the Baptist.
And yes, that’s the way it is with us too! We never stop with our mission like Jesus amid all the storms and darkness hovering above us. There will always be sufferings and trials coming and these in itself are the reasons for us to continue with our mission like Jesus.
Inasmuch as the lives and fate of Jesus and John are intertwined, so are our lives and fate as disciples of Christ with him! It is during trials and difficulties when our proclamation of God’s kingdom are loudest and most credible. Most of all, it is in our sufferings when we go back to our internal desert when we truly experience the time of fulfillment if we remain faithful to God like Jesus Christ.
Let us pray:
Dearest Jesus: accompany us on this first week of Lent into the Father's house; make us stop all whining and complaining on the many desert experiences we are going through for that is how life is - like a wilderness with many wild beasts! Let us never lose sight of your loving presence among us, Lord, of your angels ministering to us, assuring us of the colorful rainbow of life in the horizon if we remain faithful and true. Amen.
Photo by Ms. Annalyn Dela Torre, Bgy. Caypombo, Santa Maria, Bulacan, 14 February 2024.
40 Shades of Lent by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Thursday After Ash Wednesday, 15 February 2024 Deuteronomy 30:15-20 +++ Luke 9:22-25
Photo from petalrepublic.com.
Our most loving and merciful Father, thank you for this new season of Lent, in giving us this most wonderful occasion to reflect on life's meaning we always confuse as outside of us, dependent on things, and most of all, perfect without pain and sufferings.
Life is Lent. It is the only season that begins not on a Sunday but on an ordinary day of the week, right in the midst of our many duties and worries because Lent is something within us, always asking us to make the right choices, of choosing life, not death; blessing, not curse.
Many times, Father, we are out of touch with ourselves, with life itself which we see as outside ourselves that we hardly live at all without experiencing life itself in its wholeness that includes all the beauty and scars, the lights and darkness, the glory and sorrows, the defeats and victories, the tears and laughter, the Good Friday and Easter.
If, however, you turn away your hearts and will not listen, but are led astray and adore and serve other gods, I tell you now that you will certainly perish; you will not live a long life on the land that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and occupy.
Deuteronomy 30:17-18
The way to life that you, Father, offers us through the life and example of Jesus Christ your Son is the exact opposite that the world proposes; help us realize that truth, clear us of all doubts and dilly-dallying, of making excuses and alibis that what the world sees as God's ways are limiting when in fact are liberating!
Then he said to all, “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. What profit is there for one to gain the whole world yet lose or forfeit himself?”
Luke 9:23-25
We have seen for ourselves many times how the way of the world of indulging in every desire and pleasure like wealth and fame, sex and drugs have actually led to destruction and death, sorrows and miseries than life and joy; clear our minds and hearts to make the right choice and decision of following Jesus to the Cross daily because that is what it means that life is lent, a daily journey to Good Friday that leads surely to Easter. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Tuesday in the Sixth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 13 February 2024 James 1:12-18 <*((((>< + ><))))*> + <*((((>< + ><))))*> Mark 8:14-21
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, at Bgy. Tagalag, Valenzuela City, 2023.
On this eve of Ash Wednesday, help us, dear God, to prepare for a meaningful start tomorrow of our Lenten journey of 40 days to Easter; banish from our minds and hearts all thoughts and apprehensions about the coming days of fasting and abstinence, prayers and penance, and alms-giving; forgive us, Father, when our attention goes to the details and technicalities of Lent that we set aside the most essential which is to return to you - our very first love.
Enlighten our minds and our hearts, Father in your Son Jesus Christ, to understand fully the meaning of Lent which is having less of ourselves and of the world to have more of you and of the Spirit; until now, we have not yet understood Christ's coming and teachings as we are still bothered by our scarcity and poverty, never comprehending at all how despite the affluence and abundance of material things these days, the more we have become empty and lost in life.
When he became aware of this he said to them, “Why do you conclude that it is because you have no bread? Do you not yet understand or comprehend? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes and not see, ears and not hear? And do you not remember, when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many wicker baskets full of fragments you picked up?” They answered him, “Twelve.” When I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many full baskets of fragments did younpick up?” They answered him, “Seven.” He said to them, “Do you not still understand?”
Mark 8:17-21
Worst, we got it all wrong that our sinful temptations are from God, not realizing these come from our own worldly desires.
Rather, each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his desire. Then desire conceives and brings forth sin, and when sin reaches maturity it gives birth to death. do not be deceived, my beloved brothers and sisters: all good giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by change.
James 1:14-17
On this Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, we pray, O God, for us to understand the sources of temptations and sins within us; give us the courage and strength to confront our true selves, to be sincere before you so that we may be transformed into your image and likeness that Christ had restored in us. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, 11 February 2024
Photo by Mr. Vigie Ongleo in Virginia, 02 February 2024.
It’s the final Sunday in Ordinary Time before we begin our 40-day journey of Lent this Ash Wednesday which falls on February 14th, Valentine’s Day. That is why we have chosen a music that is light and easy and romantic, though poignant about those big what ifs in life, What Might Have Been by Grammy-nominated Lou Pardini.
Co-written with jazz vocalist Ms. Kevyn Lettau, What Might Have Been is Pardini’s most popular song especially here in the Philippines and Asia that was included in his first solo album Live and Let Live released in 1996. Unknown to many, Pardini’s first composition ever recorded was also Smokey Robinson’s most popular song, Just To See Her released in 1987. It earned Robinson a Grammy while Pardini was nominated to a Grammy too for the composition. From 2009-2022, Pardini was the lead vocalist and keyboardist of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band Chicago. He had collaborated too with almost major bands and vocalists in his career with some stints in Hollywood providing music in some movies and TV shows.
What Might Have Been tells us the story of a love lost and the resulting regrets by the singer. Most of all, it touches one of everyone’s favorite subject and theme or question in life: ”what might have been” our lives be had we made the right choices or have been better or wiser, perhaps more faithful or understanding?
Somewhere lost in the wind I’m watching you Sunlight touching your hair And I remember
Somehow We said that we would never stray But somehow we lost our way Promises to often spoken
Are easily broken apart I’m ready this time I know that I’m No longer undecided
Don’t want to be a fool wondering… … What might have been Trace of forever lingering Drawing me closer to you
A new beginning Now I know There is no doubt I understand
Just how fragile love can be I can’t forget Your memory found me Now I know where I belong…
I’m ready this time I know that I’m No longer undecided Don’t want to be a fool wondering…
… What might have been
I love that last stanza saying, “I’m ready this time/I know that I’m/No longer undecided/Don’t want to be a fool wondering…/What might have been/.” We find this stanza so appropriate and close with the lessons of this Sunday’s gospel when a leper approached Jesus, knelt before him and begged, “If you wish, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him, and said to him, “I do will it. Be made clean” (Mk. 1:40-41).
Many times in life, we are afraid of approaching the love of our life, even God, for so many reasons but later we find them not important at all. Worst, there were times the other person was just waiting for us to make the move or to approach her/him or them.
Jesus is passing by everyday in our lives, welcoming us even in our worst selves or situations like that leper (https://lordmychef.com/2024/02/10/approaching-jesus-approachable-like-jesus/). Let us approach him, go to him and express what’s deepest in our hearts no matter what these may be. Jesus loves us so much. He wants us to come to him and join him in his journey. Let us leave our comfort zones like our past with all of its mistakes and failures, pains and hurts to start anew in him again. It is Christ’s will too that we be better.
Like in that beautiful lines by Pardini, let us be ready this time, decide once and for all to come to Jesus and follow him instead of wondering what might have been. Don’t let this chance to pass again. Jesus is waiting for us. Have a lovely Sunday, friends!
Last Friday was the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus to the Temple (February 2) also known as the Feast of the Candlemass wherein candles were blessed outside the church after which the people led by the priest enters to begin the Mass in a procession with lighted candles.
Candlemass is a beautiful celebration, especially when done properly by priests. Its origin dates back to more than 1500 years ago in France where it started when people incorporated the blessing of candles into the Feast of the Presentation then known with its Eastern title as “the Encounter” to refer to how Simeon with the Prophetess Anna met the child Jesus being offered by his parents Joseph and Mary to the temple 40 days after Christmas. According to St. Luke, Simeon sang the following upon meeting the child Jesus Christ.
Presentation in the Temple painting by Fra Angelico from fineartamerica.com.
“Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in sight of all the peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.”
Luke 2:29-32
In proclaiming Jesus Christ as the “light” of salvation for the nations, the early French Christians thought of having the blessing of candles and procession of lighted candles to signify Jesus as the only and true light of the world. Thanks be to God for those pious early French Christians!
Though candles are no longer used as a major source of lighting in homes and other places, it is still used in almost all churches, monasteries and other houses of worship around the world, gaining a renewed popularity among the younger generation. It is a most welcomed development in our modern time as more and more people are rediscovering the need for spiritual growth of whatever label. And right in the midst of this is the candle as a tool for better prayer periods.
Unfortunately, this beautiful tradition of the candles is dying in our country. How ironic that we who belong to the Third World have switched to electric vigil lamps and candles while those in the First World still use the traditional candles in their homes and churches.
Go abroad like in North America and Europe, one finds a plethora of all kinds of beautiful candles used and sold even in the simplest churches and stores! During a Holy Land pilgrimage in the 2017 Easter Season, one of the things I appreciated and admired next to the pilgrim sites were the lovely and regal designs of paschal candles in the churches we visited that made me wonder why nobody makes them here in our predominantly Catholic country.
Candles have always have a special place in the life of our faith and the Church since its early beginnings. From the Latin words candere and candela that mean “to shine”, it evolved into the Middle and Old English words candele and candel.
Aside from lighting the gatherings of the early Christians especially in the catacombs to evade arrests during the persecution, candles have always been used to signify Christ as the light of the world guiding our paths as Christians in every celebration, from Baptism to Weddings and Funerals.
Candles do not only make rooms shine but most especially the souls and the hearts of those who cultivate a prayer life. It has that unique warmth that can soothe and calm those who are agitated or worried with life’s many trials and challenges.
Every time we light a candle during prayer periods, our inner selves are made brighter as they evoke in us so much feelings of the Divine presence. Their little lights that flicker remind us of our feeble selves whose life could be easily snuffed out with a single blow.
The scent of burning candle permeates our senses, calming us within, inviting us to leave all our worries in life as we lay our cards out in the open to God. A candles warmth can dissolve every hardness within us, purifying us within and becoming empty and open for God’s grace to work in us.
In a sense, candles may be considered as a sacrament too which is defined as a visible sign with invisible power.
The very act of lighting a candle is already the start of prayer, something like the making of the sign of the Cross. I strongly recommend for those who wish to aid their prayer periods with candles to use matches not lighters that are artificial.
Lighting up a candle for prayer especially in the morning can rouse our senses. The striking of the match with its sudden burst of light to kindle the candle is like an angel had suddenly come down to assure us that our prayer is heard by God, that God is with us at the very moment or at least reminds us we have turned into the mode of praying.
The strong scent of the burning matchstick also adds flavor and aroma to the prayer period especially in the early morning when the whole world is still dark and everyone still asleep with you as the only one awake with God. Lighting a candle first thing first upon waking up can help us avoid from getting our cellphones or turning on the radio or the TV. A lighted candle can prevent us from being distracted by these modern gadgets that keep us away from God and from one another.
My altar with lighted candle at night; see the candle snuffer at the foreground.
Lighting a candle during a prayer period in our room or home works like the candlelight dinner that sets us to a lovely communion with God our beloved. The slow burning of a candle reminds us even in our busiest morning that we are at prayer in the presence of God, that we need to slow down too in our lives, to be conscious of our selves, surroundings and time so we can set our sights to God alone like a beloved in a candlelight dinner date.
At night time, the sight of the candle burning in one’s room is most dramatic as we close the day. Actually, it is during night time that the Church prays the Canticle of Simeon.
Imagine that scene at the temple when Simeon sang as he held the Child Jesus in his arms – of his readiness to die, to go in peace, after seeing Christ the light of salvation. In the darkness of the night punctuated only by a burning candle, we are able to examine our hearts of the many things we have done and failed to do the whole day. These become clearer in the light of the candle that penetrates our hearts and conscience, piercing and rending our souls to remove the darkness within us, exposing the festering anger or bitterness and sadness hiding inside, melting them away with its warmth so we may go to sleep clean and ready to continue with life – here or hereafter like Simeon.
By Kay Bratt in Facebook, 13 December 2023.
One last note about candles as we end this reflection. Monks use a candle snuffer in extinguishing candles in their chapels and monasteries. These are long metal instruments with tips like a bell that monks hover above a candle, slowly covering it until its light is snuffed out, hence, the name candle snuffer.
If you want to be serious in praying better with lighted candles, you may buy those small candle snuffers for home use available at some candle shops in the malls. If there is no candle snuffer, one may use the cover of the candle to snuff out the light. What is important is that as we close our prayers with the lighted candle as companion, we don’t simply blow its light to abruptly end its glow.
When blowing the candle used in prayer, do it slowly as if you are whispering. Do it with solemnity. Every candle used at prayer becomes blessed, demanding some sort of reverence as companions in our prayer life and journey. Of course, it would be good if you can have your candles blessed by the priest for use at home to ward off negative vibes but more important than that is we grow in our prayer life, we become like lighted candles who give light to others in Christ. Like our candles, we also become a prayer to God in our very selves. Amen.Have a blessed Thursday.
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, 04 February 2024
Photo by author, Our Lady of Fatima University-Laguna Campus in Sta. Rosa, 19 February 2024.
Our gospel this Sunday speaks a lot about the importance of person-to-person communication, of the healing wonders of the sense of touch and its deeper implications in our relationships when Jesus healed the mother-in-law of Simon Peter.
On leaving the synagogue Jesus entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John. Simon’s mother-in-law lay sick with a fever. They immediately told him about her. He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up. Then the fever left her and she waited on them.
Mark 1:29-31
See how the evangelist narrated in details the healing by Jesus who “approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up.” More than the actual touching and face-to-face or actual encounter, the scene speaks so well of deep personal relationships among us. That is why we have chosen Rupert Holmes’ 1976 single Touch and Go.
Nobody said that Life is always fair Sometimes it clips your wings While you’re in mid-air But there’s a thread Between your life and mine And when you’re losin’ hope This rope won’t unwind
REFRAIN: Hold on tight ‘Cause life is touch and go It’s sink and swim But never doubt If you’re out on a limb I’ll get the call To break your fall I’ll never leave you Even when life Is touch and go Or hit and run We’ll never break If we take it as one I’m here to stay, I pray you know I’ll never touch I’ll never touch and go
Someday you’ll find There’s nothin’ in the night That wasn’t there before You turned out the light Straight from your mind The monster ‘neath your bed The voices in the hall They’re all in your head
A gifted musician with a knack in story-telling, Holmes’ songs are always imbued with his deep insights about life he had gathered from ordinary experiences like his earlier hit Terminal (1974) and his two hit singles Escape (The Piña Colada Song) in 1979 and Him in 1980. These three are all dashed with humor that can tickle our bones but disturb our conscience too.
In Touch and Go, Holmes goes philosophical, sounding a bit like Job in today’s first reading of how life can sometimes be unfair that “Sometimes it clips your wings while you’re on mid-air” while assuring his beloved of his deep love and dedication that no matter what happens, he would always be there by her side to save her.
That is exactly what Jesus tells us in the gospel this Sunday, of how he would always approach us, grasp our hand and help us up when we are down. The question is, are we in touch with Jesus too? Or, we always go and leave him especially when things are doing great in our lives?
If us humans like Holmes can boldly assure our beloved of always being there, of being in touch and connected especially in times of trials and sufferings, all the more is Jesus Christ who had come to empower us by connecting us with God and one another always in loving service (https://lordmychef.com/2024/02/03/real-power-empowers/).
It is a Sunday. Don’t forget to celebrate Mass or go to your places of worship to get in touch with God and with others in your community. Here is Rupert Holmes to help you chill more on this cool February Sunday amidst life’s many “touch and go, sink and swim” situations.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Thursday in the Fourth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 01 February 2024 1 Kings 2:1-4, 10-12 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> Mark 6:7-13
Photo by author, Camp John Hay, Baguio City, 12 July 2023.
Praise and glory to you God our loving Father! Thank you for January, thank you very much for February; as we start this second month of the year, you remind us how in life every ending is also a beginning.
When the time of David’s death drew near, he gave these instructions to his son Solomon: ”I am going the way of all flesh. Take courage and be a man. Keep the mandate of the Lord, your God, following his ways and observing his statutes, commands, ordinances, and decrees as they are written in the law of Moses, that you may succeed in whatever you do, wherever you turn.”
1 Kings 2:1-3
Give us the grace of ageing gracefully, Father, like your servant David; give us the courage and sincerity to accept, to embrace when we are "going the way of all flesh"; yes, we all wish a life of joy and happiness with less pains and difficulties but as we forge on life, we have experienced, we have realized, and proven so many times that hardships and hurts are inevitable parts of this life, even separations and death that David perfectly called as way of the flesh.
Joy and fulfillment happen when we embrace these shadows and darkness for it is in those spaces where lights are most visible and life is most meaningful; give us, Lord Jesus, the courage to let go, to leave our extra baggages behind in order to travel light in this life proclaiming your good news; make us realize that true wealth is in having less of the material and more of the spiritual; most of all, every ending is also a beginning, hence, the need for us to prepare those next to us. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Wednesday, Memorial, St. Francis Sales, Bishop & Doctor of the Church, 24 January 2024 2 Samuel 7:4-17 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Mark 4:1-20
“The Sower at Sunset” by Vincent Van Gogh, oil on canvas painted in June 1888 from wikimedia commons.
Lord Jesus Christ, as you narrated to us today the parable of the sower, I wonder what were the other seeds you have sowed aside from your word?
On another occasion, Jesus began to teach by the sea. A very large crowd gathered around him so that he got into a boat on the sea and sat down. And the whole crowd was beside the sea on land. And he taught them at length in parables, and in the course of his instruction he said to them, “Hear this! A sower went out to sow.”
We are not just the different kinds of soil where your seeds fell, Lord Jesus; like you, may we also be sowers of your word and teachings, sowers of your love and mercy, sowers of compassion and kindness, sowers of your light and life, sowers of your hope and healing, sowers of your very presence.
When God told David not to build him a temple as he promised to raise a house for him from whom shall come the Christ, that was when the Father also sowed the seeds of redemption and fulfillment in you, Lord Jesus!
On this feast of St. Francis Sales, patron of Catholic journalists and media practitioners, we pray for all communicators to sow unity and peace, not division nor misunderstanding, nor animosities; we pray for all journalists of different platforms to sow understanding and clarity, to sow justice and equality among peoples, and to sow respect for life at all times because every communication must promote first of all the dignity of every person. Amen.
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